chapter five ♔ it'll be a day like this one when the sky falls down

[eldritchweaver]

the blues - switchfoot

WHO || The Knights
WHAT || Failboat returns from the disaster in LA as the Knighthood goes on lockdown
WHERE || The castle, London
WHEN || Directly after this, Fall 2017
HOW || Actionspam

Hasmed's announcement does not brook any rebuttal: all Knights are recalled to the Castle, where they must remain until the Section Heads and Jack Chessing have spoken about the events in Los Angeles that have left the Knighthood without their usual leader.  

The entire Los Angeles area is now covered with a dark miasma that has interfered with any signals that might be sent out from phones, etc., leaving the whole world wondering what exactly is happening down there.  Final images showed horrendous monsters, a panic of citizens, looting and violence from humans and Shadowkind alike.  

Hasmed has warned of extra magical wards on the castle, and anyone arriving will immediately take notice of one very prominent one: above the entire roof of the excessively large building hovers a black and red sigil in the air, a pentagram in a circle surrounded by runes or words in an unknown language, stretching for miles.  

[ This is the social log for post-LA lockdown.  Failboat must complete the top log before being allowed to tag outside of it. ]

Comments

[militarized]

[Okay, this seems to be just getting worse and he's not sure what's going on here but surely Rey has a good reason???

Either way, he's decided to stop being a chicken (thanks will save) and quit hiding in the darkness like a tool. He steps out into the hallway, his eyebrows drawn together in concern.]

Rey?

[Pls explain. Please don't kill him Sith lady.]

[forcevisions]

Finn?

[ she loses her cool as she whips around. ]

What are you doing here?

[ sense motive of 12 brings her to the obvious conclusion, ]

... Were you following me?

[militarized]

What? No!

[...]

I mean, yes, but not like THAT. I thought you were heading to the training room or something.

[Clearly, that didn't happen somewhere along the way.]

[throughvictory]

This doesn't involve you. [ her voice is a low warning to finn, as she watches them ]

[forcevisions]

Well obviously I wasn't. Were you just lurking there, listening?

[ privacy, finn! ]

[militarized]

I wasn't lurking.

[Okay, he was kind of lurking.]

I was just worried, okay? She's a freaking Sith. You know, like the one that tried to kill us? The one that killed Han? Not to mention they do weird mind control things.

[Blatantly ignores the lady BEHIND BARS.]

They already punished a bunch of people for maybe being brainwashed. I don't want them to do that to you too.

[forcevisions]

Weird mind control?

[ she huffs it out like it pains her to repeat. why wouldn't it? finn has brought up the most painful series of events in her very painful life. heat builds in her face and neck. ]

I don't need you to protect me! She's not the only one who can affect minds. [ she turns away from the bars because this is So Not About Vane anymore. the hurt cracks through her voice as she asks, ] Do you really think that makes me like him?

[militarized]

That's not what I meant.

[Ugh, why is he so bad at this. Emotions are hard and he's bad at them on a good day. Not to mention words.]

I'm not saying those things are inherently bad, okay. Just because you can do the same things doesn't mean you're anything like them. That's the whole point.

[She's not like Kylo Ren, so what's she doing down here hanging out with a Sith talking about stealing things?]

I'm not trying to protect you. We both know you don't need me for that. [She's kind of the most badass person ever.] I'm just trying to understand what this is about.

[throughvictory]

Then perhaps you should ask, rather than accuse.

[forcevisions]

It's about finding answers before they're lost to politics and infighting.

[ if what ahsoka says is true, this already happened to the jedi once. because of that she has no one to help her understand what she is capable of. she doesn't want it to happen again.

she turns away from finn then at vane's remark and says, ] Can you teach me to feel it out? How to get inside?

[militarized]

[He wants to say he wasn't accusing anyone of anything, but really that only applied to Rey. Giving a Sith the benefit of the doubt was a lot harder all things considered.

Regardless, he seems to take Rey's explanation for now, giving her a nod before looking at Vane intently to see what her answer is going to be.]

[throughvictory]

I could. But it would take time. Do you have that to spare?

[forcevisions]

How much time?

[throughvictory]

I've no way to know that. It would depend on you as much as me.

[forcevisions]

[ she thinks of caroline, who is expecting to leave within the fortnight. it's an ugly choice: protect her friend, or understand herself? ]

Fine. As long as it takes. But if you lie to me, or drag this out ...

[ she doesn't feel compelled to finish the threat. ]

[throughvictory]

[ she glides forward, long white fingers curving around the bars ] Yes?

Then what?

[forcevisions]

Then when I get my hands on the holocron — and I will, with or without your help — I'll make sure you hear nothing of what it contains.

[throughvictory]

Such confidence.

But still, it will take weeks to teach you. At least.

[forcevisions]

Then we'd better get started.

[ she hesitates, then turns to finn. ]

Finn ... [ she looks apologetic. she doesn't want him to watch this, though, not after what he'd said. as much as she knows she could go talk to caroline herself later ... ] I need you to tell Caroline something. Tell her I'm sorry. And that I can't go, not yet. There's something I still need. But tell her ... Tell her that I'll keep her safe.

[militarized]

[There is so much about this that he doesn't like, but he trusts Rey and he's already halfway in the doghouse, so...]

Alright.

[He still hesitates, looking between the two women before his eyes settle on his friend.]

Just...be careful, okay?

[And unless she asks or tells him anything else, he's just going to excuse himself and do that thing she just asked him to do.]

[throughvictory]

[ she just watches this exchange with a little smirk on her face ]

[forcevisions]

[ she watches finn's back as he leaves, worrying. only when he's out of sight does she turn back to vane. ]

Well? Where do we start?

[throughvictory]

First, I need to understand what you are already capable of.

[forcevisions]

In Luzon, I reached out and used the Force to touch ... memories. Impressions of what had happened, of your fight with that Jedi. [ she crinkles her nose. does that explain it? not effectively, but perhaps adequately enough to move on. ] I've turned the mind of a stormtrooper to obey me. I've moved things, called them to me.

I've read someone's thoughts. Someone trained. It was like I was inside his head. [ it's not a reach to conclude that, based on the disdain and unease with which she recounts this, it might be the same so-called Sith that Finn mentioned. ] But ...

I think it goes deeper than these things I can do. I didn't see it before, but ... It was always there. I look back, and I understand this is what it was. Even when I didn't know how to reach for it. [ on starkiller base, she'd had to reach out, but now it's here all the time. ] Like now it's just ... awake.

[throughvictory]

You've become aware of the greater power that sits at your fingertips. That's good. But despite the apparent ease with which you have managed so much, you must hone that control if you wish to accomplish the nearly impossible.

Try it now. That door is sealed. [ she nods at the empty cell across from her ]